Living Like This
by TheNefelibata
Summary: It's no secret that the Doctor struggles with the mire of his mind and that he never lets anyone else share this burden, or that pre-teenage Seph can't cope with the whirlpool of her brain, either. When the two share more than either would have wanted, Seph has to grow up with less control than ever and the Doctor is left with no choice. He must find Seph, before she loses herself.
1. First Encounters -Seph

**All of these characters belong to the BBC, except Seph. She's all mine...**

 **This is my first Whovian fic, but don't be scared. I am a life-long die-hard fan, so there won't be any anomalies, at least as far as I know- please let me know if there is.**

 **Please review as I need all the help that I can get.**

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I was sure that the blue box hadn't been there six hours before. In fact, I'd never seen it in my life. It was way too big and clumsy and- well- _blue_ not to have missed it. And, I don't miss things. Full stop. It stood on the corner of the alleyway as if it were observing me. Judging me. I stuck two fingers up at it- then, checked behind me in case someone had seen. The last thing I needed was another person thinking I was a nutter. But, then again, maybe I had finally gone around the twist. Other kids from school just kept on walking by, like it wasn't actually there. They were the last dregs of the latest classes. Soon, the street would be empty and it would just be me and my imaginary box.

There were footsteps pounding down the street. I ignored them. Probably yet another victim fleeing from Kirk Fitzharris. They wouldn't be the last. I stayed staring at the blue box, then sighed. What good was this doing me? I hefted my bag onto my shoulder again and turned to start walking.

A thick, horrible crack. Pain and the most sickening sensation of dizziness. It was as if my life was flowing out of the pain in my head and as if the rest of everything was flooding in. Lights, voices. Words, endless, meaningless without context, yet so wrapped up in connotation. People, places, death, life. And loss. So much hollow loss that I feel like I am being swallowed whole by its raging, aching maw. Then, empty blackness and nothing.

The first thing that I noticed as I returned to myself was that my blasted bag was still on my shoulder. It always, always fell off when I was being shoved in the corridors, when I was trying to escape classrooms, when I was trying to stare endlessly at blasted blue boxes. Why, when I am knocked down does it decide to stay on? Probably to spite me. I could feel the beginnings of a bruise already where my books were pressing against my hips. Stupid, bloody bag.

I pushed myself up onto my elbows, squinting through eyes that seemed to be rolling and focusing of their own accord. I could hear a panicky, female voice saying the same word over and over. The voice seemed to be coming from a red-haired woman kneeling on the floor. What the hell was she doing down there? I shuffled myself into a sitting position and cursed under my breath as my head span. I hadn't felt this rough since- well we don't go there. Not anymore.

I stumbled to my feet and looked over the red-haired woman's shoulder. A man was laying splaying out on his back, just like I had been. Wildly, I wondered if the blue box that still stood next to me hadn't liked him either. He was tall and thin, with arms and legs that seemed unnaturally slender, like a spider's. I imagined him running with them flicking everywhere. A brown pinstripe suit covered his skinniness and he was wearing a pair of dirty white Converse. I was instantly jealous and wanted them. I'd always wanted Converse, but one day in a pair of imitations had proved that my feet really didn't share my interest. He had a thin face, topped off with a crest of brown hair, and I could see his features lit up in animation in my mind's eye. I looked away, for a second. This was weird. I could imagine him running and smiling as clearly as if I was looking in a mirror. I shook my head and let the rolling waves of vertigo take the images away.

He sat up so fast me and the red-haired lady withdrew, her leaping to her feet. He made a noise like a helicopter, shaking his head like a dog. He stopped, looking straight ahead and sticking his lower jaw out, taking stock. Then, leapt to his feet, his legs careering out from underneath him. He set his arms on the lady's shoulders, grinning like a fool, wiggling his chin around.

'Who-ah!' he croaked, all kid at a fair-ground. The woman looked at him for a minute, when slapped him. He stumbled backwards and fell against the wall beside me. 'What was that for?' he asked incredulously, but almost jocular, like it was a well-practised inside joke. The woman didn't look too happy, though.

'You scared me! What the hell was all that, Doctor?' She took the two steps forward and hugged him. He looked stunned for about two seconds then hugged her back, his gangly arms easily wrapping around her as if it was her who needed help staying upright, not him.

'I'm fine, Donna,' he said, just quiet enough to sound sincere, but with just enough of a smile so he wasn't patronising her. Bloody hell, now I envied her, with a mate like that. All this jealousy. Dr Flipping Freud 2.0 would have a field day. 'Honestly, look at me.' She drew back and stared at him like people stared at me in the corridors. Like he was insane. A livid purple bruise stood out on his forehead. I could feel a doppelganger on my own forehead 'Anyway. Where is she?'

'Where's who?' Donna asked.

'The girl I ran into-' he stopped. He'd spotted me out of the corner of his eye. I shifted. They'd noticed me. Slowly, they both turned to face me. Two pairs of eyes, one infinitely deep brown and the other hazel, came to rest accusingly on me. I felt my breath hitch in my throat. The man, this _Doctor_ , took the beginnings of a step towards me. That was enough.

I ditched my stupid bag and ran.


	2. The Mind of a Mad Man -The Doctor

**Thank you so much for the support already- I really appreciate it and it's encouraged me to carry on with this little idea o' mine.**

 **Please review, even if it's only just a rating out of 5, so I know how I'm doing so far. Let me know what you think about my characterisation of Ten and Donna, so I can work on it- I know it's not great!**

 **Thank you!**

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The girl stood there, looking as if she was a bird poised to take flight. She was slight, about eleven or twelve, with unearthly blue eyes and a wisp of black hair almost floating in a short mop around her head. She was wearing a school uniform, but it was too big for her and had the appearance of being worn too much already. The Doctor noticed this all with a detachedness he wasn't used to. It was as if he'd already seen this face hundreds and thousands of times before. He knew every jutting bone and tightly gripping finger. He even felt a ping of irritation as the bag strap of the satchel she was wearing dropped off her shoulder, as if it was his own bag. He narrowed his brow in thought. It was almost as if-

He caught her eye. A million memories cascaded into his head in a burning, broiling turmoil. He almost gasped. It was like his consciousness had been doused in ice-cold water, the shivers not physical, but mental. He not only could see the girl, but feel her as well, every single emotion, thought and sensation she had ever felt freezing his insides. The Doctor had been in minds before- he'd been in some very damaged minds- but none had ever felt like this girl's. It was like someone had pulled a pin on a grenade and they were shuffling it in their hands so they could get a good enough grip to throw it. Constant movement, panic, desperation. It was as if there were hundreds of voices living inside all crying out for attention. He was being told hundreds of things and it felt like his brain was swelling in his skull, swelling, swelling-

He slammed the door shut and the voices fell silent.

In the absence of Persephone Myers' thoughts, his head seemed empty. Sympathy welled inside him and he took a step towards her.

She ran.

Without hesitating, he leapt over her satchel and raced after her. She was far quicker than he expected and she dipped into pathways and alleys almost faster than he could. He needed to get to her, to help her before the grenade exploded. Her skinny form dipped and twisted. The Doctor sped up, his Converse pounding on the floor. He could hear Donna's panting slowly melt away and made a mental note of where she was. He had no intention of losing her.

Without warning, grief gurgled up in his throat and almost made him stop running. It came sometimes, like this, when he was least expecting it. Grief at what he had lost, at what he had done. If he hadn't have been running, he knew that he would have stopped whatever else he had been doing and found somewhere alone. As it was, he couldn't. So, the feeling saturated in his chest as he put on another burst of speed.

He rounded a corner and almost tripped over the girl. She was sitting with her back to the wall of the side of the house next to her, her knees drawn up loosely and her arms resting on her knees. Her eyes looked through him, to the middle distance and they glistened with what the Doctor knew was tears. And in that second, he knew what they were for. Him feeling her thoughts. It must have worked both ways. Now, this human- this _child_ \- was feeling all of the guilt and regret of the last of the Time Lords. Guilt forced its way into the grief and he slumped down next to her, realising that she'd mimicked a pose he himself adopted.

Once he didn't feel like this, once he didn't feel as though he could never get up again, he'd wipe her memories. For now- the girl leant into his shoulder as if it was the most natural thing in the world and they comforted one another.

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 _'I'm sorry for what you have lost. I'm sorry for the pain that I have caused you. Please, forgive me.'_

Someone was shaking the Doctor's shoulder. He looked up. The sun had almost disappeared from the sky. Donna stood next to him, a mixture of fear and sympathy on her face. He jumped up and looked around. Donna had not said the words that curled around his consciousness. He looked for the girl. Persephone was nowhere to be seen. He groaned and ran his hand through his hair. His forehead throbbed as he touched it. Of course, he though, a wry smile playing on his lips. Psychic head butt.

They crashed open the TARDIS doors and the Doctor bent down to examine his reflection in a shiny knob on the console. He sighed as he caught sight of the livid bruise on his skin. So much for going unnoticed for the next week. He'd have to find out where the medical bay was again, after it disappeared a couple of months back.

'What does that mean for her, then?' asked Donna, almost accusatory, as she approached the Doctor, her arms folded across her chest. The Doctor leant forwards, hiding the conflict on his face.

'It means bad,' he said, quietly. 'It means very bad. I need to find her.' He raced around the console to the scanner and an image of Persephone flashed up, looking directly, curiously, into the camera. 'Yes,' he said, gleefully to his ship. 'Yes. We need to find her.' He flicked half a dozen switches and began to pump a handle. Something clanged to his right and he stuck out a foot, holding the lever steady. He caught Donna's eye and the first traces of a real smile clung to his features as he said, 'Hold on!' He swung the dematerialisation lever home.

Nothing happened. Silence. He pushed the lever back and swung it again. Nothing. The Doctor stood up slowly, taking his foo,t almost embarrassedly, off the console unit. He flicked a switch and it pinged, just as it always did. The Doctor had no idea what that switch did, just that it made an impressive noise. He flicked it again and again it pinged. Everything seemed to be in order.

'What's up?' he asked the central column. A throbbing noise that sounded like a growl floated up from the machinery. He glanced at the scanner. An image of Persephone stood there again, only this time, two fingers sticking up, an expression of mild annoyance on her face. 'Oh.'

'What?' said Donna, coming round to stand beside him. She noticed the scanner and winced. 'Oh.'

'Yep. Doesn't look like they got off to the best start.' He put his hands on the console. 'I'm sorry, old girl. I need to find her.' The menacing noise came again, only louder. He saw Donna flinch out of the corner of his eye and put out his arm to make her step back. When the TARDIS was sulking, there was no telling what she might do. 'Please, she's-' On the other side of the console, something exploded in a shower of sparks, and the Doctor ducked, pulling Donna down with him.

'It doesn't look like it's going to be that easy,' he said, as something else shattered above their heads. 'But I need to find her. I can't let her live like this.'


	3. What Remains -Seph

**Yet again, thank you so much for the reviews that you have left me!.It's great to know that I'm doing alright!**

 **Please keep letting me know your opinions on the story- it helps me frame my ideas and makes sure that I'm heading in the right direction.**

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It wasn't long before the walls started slipping.

For a little while, I guess I could keep the Doctor's mind locked away, subdue it to a tiny voice amongst many. I didn't really notice anything different about sharing a head with someone else, so long as they didn't try to make me do anything. If anything, I seemed nicer. More controlled. Like having the Doctor in there with me made my unstable personality just a tad more balanced. It annoyed me sometimes, because I couldn't always tell when he was accessing my memories. Just a tingle, or an odd dream. He did that a lot to begin with, almost like he was trying to pinpoint who I was. I didn't dare go near his thoughts. It was like the nub of his consciousness had a glowing sign on it: "Here be monsters".

It wasn't a gradual change either, not like losing your mind. It came all at once like the crashing wave of a tsunami in an empty bay. Unstoppable.

Completely unexpectedly, irrational fear filled me like quicksand, rising a scream like bile in my searing throat. I'd never felt fear like this before, not even _then_. I wanted to thrash, to struggle, to free myself from the binds of the horrific monster I was sure held me. It was as if the someone I loved was being killed on the other side of the room and I- couldn't- _move_! The scream surfaced, wrenching my jaws open, as inexorable as death itself. I howled. It was like no scream I'd ever uttered before. It was feral, frantic, almost- alien. It broke off, and my jaws wrenched open again.

'River, please. No!' I cried, feeling my cheeks hot with tears that were not my own. The nub of the Doctor's mind was expanding, powered by unstoppable fear. I could feel myself dwindle, shrink, until I was only an observer, watching what his grief was doing to me.

'Time can be rewritten!' I shrieked, hysterically. It was almost as if the control the Doctor was trying to keep was bouncing his battalion of emotions back onto me. My muscles, taut and tight, slackened, as if he had given up and I slid off the bench. I was certain there were other people there, faces swimming in tight circles around me, but there was only one face I cared about. My fear was shrinking, aching rather than burning, bitter, horrible throbs. Tears streamed down my face and I felt the most desperate I had ever felt. As if I was dying and scrabbling for air. I would have given anything to help the face that the Doctor was trying to save.

'River,' I said again, and the faces around the husk of my body withdrew slightly. I seemed to be shaking, uncontrollably. 'You know my name.' A sob burst from me. 'You whispered my name in my ear. There's only one reason when I would ever tell anyone my name. There's only one time I could.' The sobs were coming thick and fast.

It was like a countdown was echoing through my head and my breaths came faster and faster. I couldn't stop it and I could feel blackness gathering in my eyes and through my head. I couldn't control the Doctor's emotions. I wasn't built for it. There were hundreds of people in my head, millions of voices, but none of them had ever had ever, or could ever, make me feel as I did now. A bright light filled my brain and a sickening finality filled me, like everything I had ever stood for had just- ended.

Then, time stopped.

Sleep is my favourite state of being. Everyone dreams, and everyone's dreams are nonsensical. You can dream of hundreds of voices and thousands of worlds, and you're just normal. My ramblings are no difference to anyone else's. You can't be mad in your dreams. I'm just the same as everyone else.

I was being held when I awoke. Someone had hold of my head and somebody else was touching my neck. I tried to ignore this for a second and looked to myself. The coil of live wire that had been running through my head felt as if it was slowly disintegrating, and the Doctor was slowly returning to the little nub in amongst my brain. It was as if I could control it again. I struggled onto my elbows and felt a hand on my chest, trying to push me back. A voice, one that I'd never heard before, seeped into my ears.

'You're alright, love. Just lay back for me, yeah?' I squinted, ignoring him, and the dark green uniform of a paramedic swam into view. Panic, decidedly my own, filled me. I wasn't going to go through this again. I couldn't bear it last time! I couldn't be called mad all over again. I pushed against him and got to my feet, ignoring the sway of my vision. I felt hands on me, partly steadying, partly trying to get me on the ground again. I looked straight into the face of the paramedic closest to me, noticing that the over-pronounced chin and icy green eyes looked oddly familiar. Damn. It _was_ the one from last time. I noticed a burst of recognition so obvious, it was a wonder there wasn't a pinging noise.

'Don't I know you?' he said. I blinked. I needed to get away. Now. I turned and ran, not stopping for another second, fear acting like wings. It was nothing to what the Doctor had felt earlier, but I wondered, with a swoop of worry, if he was screaming the noises that I was repressing.

It was night. Dark. Quiet. I liked the night. It made me feel safer. No one could see you in the black. I was curled in a ball in the corner of my room, a thick blanket wrapped like a shawl around me. I hadn't sat like that for a while. Not since _that_ time, anyway. Usually, just thinking about sitting like this made me feel off-kilter. Not tonight. Being in a corner was making me feel as safe as I'd felt all day.

 _Persephone._

I looked up. What? No one was in the room. That was too close to be outside the door. Who was it? I closed myself in tighter, the quiet night no longer feeling so secure.

 _Persephone._

Was it in my head? No. The voices normally kept themselves to themselves, so long as I didn't bother them. They sounded different as well. Scratchier, more metallic. Almost as if I was making them up. I'd never been sure if they were real or not. Most of the time it didn't matter: they were there whether I liked it or not.

 _Persephone!_

'Doctor?' I whispered. A feeling of assuredness washed over me. It was! It was him. But, how? How was he doing this, how was he in my head so obviously, so unashamedly. And, if he could get in and talk to me, what else could he do? I felt sick, but as soon as the feeling came, I felt emotions that were not my own soothe it, wash it away. It felt so peculiar, like being comforted by _yourself_. 'What the hell are you doing?'

A feeling like laughter seemed to come through in one burst, a short 'ha'. _I need to find you, Persephone. You're in danger. I need to find you._

'It's Seph,' I replied, my voice never raising itself above the faintest breath.

 _What?_

'It's Seph, not Persephone. What am I, some kind of goddess?' Good humour spread through me, like a mental smile. 'I can't tell you where I am.'

 _You can't have me in your head. Not with the things I've seen. You understand me Seph, you must do. You must have caught glimpses. I've seen cities burn, planets crumple, seen the universe as it claws its way to existence and watched as it fizzles out. It's not that I don't want someone to understand, it's that you can't. Your mind can't take it._

Melancholy, rich and deep and sweet filled me, and I felt my eyes burn with tears that were not my own. The Doctor tried to smother his feelings to save me from them, but they returned. For a minute, we sat there, consumed in what he had fought for. Slowly, I pushed the tale away.

'It's a pretty speech, but you're right. I understand you all too well. I know what you'll do to me if you find me. Bloody hell, I can't let that happen to me, not again.' Questioning thoughts fired at me like little arrows and I felt his mind tentatively try to access my memories. I slammed him away, stretching the connection as far as it would go. 'I can't lose myself. I've only just got started. Please, Doctor, just leave me alone.'


	4. Rose Water -The Doctor

**I just wanted to apologise for how irregular these updates are, at the moment. I'm only getting one day off a week, and I need that to study, so things are pretty tough right now. I have a plan, so I know what is going to happen, but finding time to write it up is a bit iffy at the moment. Regardless, thank you so much for the love you are showing this story, I really appreciate it.**

 **Don't forget to review and let me know how I'm doing!**

 **-TheNefelibata**

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 _I can't lose myself. I've only just got started. Please, Doctor. Just leave me alone!_

As far as the Doctor could tell, these last words sounded panicky and desperate. He was certain that if he pushed Seph a little more, he might be able to convince her. But, with a sudden rush, her presence in his mind diminished and almost vanished. The silence that followed seemed empty and hollow. Was his head normally this quiet? He almost wanted to reach into her little haven and pull her out again, just to fill the gap. He didn't, however.

He opened his eyes and Donna's face filled his vision. She stepped back, her hands on her hips. He hadn't told her what he was going to do. He kept doing this. Not telling people things. He should probably stop. He sucked in a mouthful of air and raked his hands backwards through his thick crest of hair. He needed to rest his head. The emotions of the library were still fresh and raw in his throat, making it feel like a closing wormhole. He took another deep breath, but realising it shook, stopped.

'What was that, spaceboy?' Donna's voice sounded accusatory, as it always did, but the Doctor could hear her concern and knew that, yet again, he'd worried her. He remembered Lee and realised just how badly his spacing out had affected her. He controlled the guilt and grief before it came, not wanting to hurt Seph any more than he already had.

'Do you remember Persephone Myers?' he asked. The TARDIS groaned around them, just at the mention of her name, but the Doctor ignored her. 'When River... when River _died,'_ the Doctor spat out, forcing the emotions to lie dormant, trying to console himself with the knowledge that her mind, at least, lived on. 'When River died, she felt everything I felt. Everything.' His voice broke and Donna's frown slackened.

'Do you know where she is, then?' The Doctor didn't know if she was avoiding his emotion, or if she was feeling so much herself, she had none to spare for him. Either way, seeping themselves in each other's misery wasn't helping. He stood up, noticing how shaky he was and leaning on the console to hide it.

'No. She won't tell me and the TARDIS isn't playing ball!' He emphasised the last phrase with a jab of his hand and the floor shuddered in annoyance. The Doctor steadied himself and looked deeply into the central column, watching the waves of green rise and fall. It was hypnotic. He felt as though he could watch the flow of green for hours. He often did, in fact, as Donna slept.

'We need to find her,' he muttered, half to Donna, half to himself. He looked up at Donna, who was staring at him with an expression on her face that he hated. He hated her needing to express her sympathy like that. That she _needed_ to show how sorry she was. At least with Seph he never had to talk about himself and she never felt sorry for him. She felt sorry _with_ him. As soon as he thought this, he berated himself. She was an abnormality, and it was killing her. He couldn't take advantage of her for his own good! He turned his back on Donna, his feelings causing his eyes to burn and knowing that she would see it.

'You should go to bed,' he said, shortly. 'Get some rest.'

And he was left alone again, with the horror of solitude.

Several days passed, with no contact with Seph. She was there, on the edge of his mind and occasionally he would get a thought that he had not started or feel something that had nothing to do with what he was seeing, but that was good. As far as he was concerned, that meant that Seph was still very much alive and kicking. He'd noticed Donna looking at him more than she usually did, though, and though their normal rapport was no different, he knew that she knew there was something up with him.

The pink seas of Planet 7 of the Third Colony System were one of the most beautiful sights in the universe. The Doctor took a deep breath in and marvelled at the scent of rose that filled his nostrils.

'Do that on earth and all you'd get is the smell of fish and chips,' he grinned at Donna, who was standing next to him, her hands in her pockets, and a slight smile lifting the corners of her lips. She laughed a little. 'Mind you,' he added, scratching the back of his neck and looking behind him at the emptiness of the deserts that covered the rest of the planet. 'Nice little chippie wouldn't go amiss here. What do you think? Nice little chippie. Wouldn't mind a chip butty right about now.'

Donna nudged his shoulder and he looked down at her, a mischievous smile playing on his face. She shook her head, mock-exasperated, and looked back out to sea.

'Why is it pink?' she asked. 'I mean it's lovely, but it looks a bit artificial. Like strawberry ice cream.'

'Strawberry ice cream isn't artificial,' he replied, pretending to be hurt. He loved this. Little bit of banter. No matter how old he was, nothing like it.

'It is. Have you ever been to Tesco's?' she asked.

'Poor choice of ice cream. _Poor._ '

There was an itching at the back of his skull, at the point he'd come to associate with Seph, but the Doctor ignored it.

'Alright, then, mate, what would you pick, then?' She put her hands on her hips.

'Dunno...' he replied, pretending to think.

'Plutonian Pear?' He laughed at her. 'Martian Mars Bar?'

'I told you, I'm not a Martian...'

'Fine, Time Lord Tequila? Wait, Doctor, I didn't mean to-'

'What?' he asked, confused. Her hands hand left their perch and were on his arms. He wanted desperately to lean into them, suddenly craving human closeness. What? He looked to his left and saw the rose sea, but also saw a flash of another world, a duller, more boring one, suddenly not so boring.

'You're- crying,' said Donna, almost as if she was blaming him. He hardened himself straight away, knowing how much she depended on his emotional stability, but felt the foreign emotions falling through the wall that was normally effective and in that moment, he knew.

Seph.

He turned to Donna. 'No matter what I say, what I do, do you understand that I don't mean it? Not for a while, at least.' He could feel sweat pour down his face already from the strain of containing the firecracker pounding his cranium. 'Don't ask- it's- it's Seph. Something's happening to her.'

'Don't do that,' he found himself screaming, though he could hear Seph's voice saying the words with a far more measured tone. 'I don't _need_ you to do that!' His legs gave out, despite his whole body being held with rigid muscles. He was in a ball and his fist moved, thumping the dust into a cloud. He felt his skin break and the pain seemed to ground him, because the feeling abated for a second.

 _I am the Doctor!_ he thought, trying to return to himself. Seph's niche in his head was swelling to the exclusion of all else and he tried to pull his memories and thoughts into the little corner with him, but it was impossible. _I am the Doctor._ He pushed against the torrent of feelings, trying to find the nub of Seph's brain, but finding himself instead swamped in her consciousness. _I am... I am... I am SEPH!_

A face swam in front of him, ugly and swollen beyond proportions. That wasn't what the man really looked like, but he was ugly to Seph, so he was ugly to the Doctor as well. He was trying to talk calmly and Seph was trying to keep her temper, but the rage boiling in her was thickening like burning caramel. The Doctor's abandoned body twisted and roared, just as she wanted to, but could not.

'I can't be sectioned,' Seph said softly, but the Doctor screamed against a searing throat. 'I can't be.' The voices in Seph's head were getting louder and angrier. They didn't want her locked away either. That was no use to them. They needed her out there, doing things that they wanted her to. 'Please!'

The man said something, the Doctor was sure, but his body jolted as Seph's sobs wracked him. He didn't want this. He hated being a passenger, watching this happened. Bracing himself, he severed the last ties to his own form and wrapped himself around Seph's throbbing consciousness, soothing her, trying to comfort the torrent of terror gushing through her veins.

But, it was too late. There were people in the room with Seph, people she'd seen before, ages before. The Doctor tried to notice who they were so he could find her, but Seph's eyes were screwed up. The comfort she had felt had opened the flood gates and tears were streaming into her eyes, violently hot. The Doctor felt them move her body, felt the adrenaline as she tried to resist, felt the anguish as she failed. He carried on holding Seph's weeping mind, trying to block out the pain and the voices until it too went dark.

The Doctor slunk back into the body he inhabited, covered in desert sand and his own blood from the wounds he had dealt himself. The eyes that no longer felt entirely his own cracked open and he manipulated the limbs so he could look around. Donna sat a few yards away, watching the twin suns set over the rose water. She looked pale and worried. He stumbled the body upright, a wave of dizziness making it feel as though the controls to the form his consciousness sat in were falling beyond his grasp, but he righted the centre of balance and started towards his friend.

Donna looked up as the Doctor's body approached. The Doctor saw the shock spread over her face and he wondered if his body had died. He would ask her later, but now- Donna didn't say a word, bu enveloped him in a hug. In that moment, the Doctor felt his presence return to him and pulled her close to him, feeling her frantic heartbeat through her ribs. He was almost supporting her weight, but that didn't matter. He needed someone close to him and knew that there was a human girl a few million light years away that needed it even more.


End file.
